Artificial fuel



UNITED STATES PATENT rerun.

MAX NIRDLINGER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE FUEL PATENTS COMPANY, OF NEW JERSEY.

ARTIFICIAL FUEL.

,JPEG'IFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 533,486, dated February 5, 1895.

Application filed March 23, 1892. Serial N0.426,147. (No specimens.)

To all whom it may concern: possible to stop the process of distillation or Be it known that LMAX NIRDLINGER,acitimanufacture at the point where there is a zen of the United States, residing at Philadelpitch material suitable for my purposes. phia, in the county of Philadelphia and State Hence I find it necessary to take the pitch 5 of Pennsylvania, have invented certain ,new after its manufacture and again add thereto and useful Improvements in Artificial Fuel, a small amount of the tar previously taken of which the following is a specification. therefrom in order to produce a compound This invention relates to an improved comwhich will be capable of being made suffiposition of materials for afuel, the object 106- ciently fluid to be mixed with the other in- 6o ing to provide a fuel of coal dust, slaok or gradients and yet shall after the fuel is manculm, which shall be of little cost, and shall ufactured be sufficiently hard at all ordinary be capable of compression into blocks or cakes temperatu res to meet the requirements. that will maintain their form and desired con- Heretofore there has not been, so far as I sistency under all ordinary conditions. know, any discovery or utilization of the prin- 65 i Heretofore much difficulty has been expeciple which I follow, namely, this, that there rienced in producing a fuel containing the is a certain advantageous coaction between slack or culm of coal which will meet all the the hard pitch and its companion tarry or requirements of a marketable article. In more viscid product. I am aware of the fact some cases the fuels after they have been that in numerous ways pitches, tars, resins, 70 2o manufactured into the form of blocks or cakes 850., have been com mingled; butI have found disintegrate rapidly either because of the abthat if a vegetable product be combined with sorption of moisture or from the contraction the mineral, or vice versa, the efiiciency of and expansion due to variations in temperathe binder is practicallydestroyed. In other tnrc. With others it is found that as soon as Words, I have succeeded in producing abinder the fuel is introduced into the fire a disintewhich at all ordinary temperatures is thorgrat-ion there immediately results from the oughly solid, but the proportions are such heating or evaporating of the binding ingrethat at the time of manufacture it is softened clients. only to the point where a thorough commin- I have found that a superior fuel can be gling of it with the solid particles is attain- 80 0 provided by combining in suitable proporable.

tions the culms of the two distinct species of After the two species of the coal, culm or coal known as the bituminous and the an thraslack have been thoroughly commiugled, cite, and also that a very efficient binding heated and dried, and after the above-dematerial can be produced by using pitch, toscribed hydrocarbon and other ingredients 85 getherwithasmallamountof thetarobtained havebeen properly mixed, they are placed from that pitch during the process of distiltogether (in the proportions of nineteen hunlation. Imanufactureit as follows: Eighteen dred pounds of the mixed culms to one hunhundred pounds of culm,s1ack, dust orscreendred pounds of the hydrocarbon) in a mixing ings of anthracite coal are placed in a mixing machine, where they are thoroughly agitated 9o 40 machine and thoroughly mingled with one and mixed together and are heated to the hundred pounds of the culm, slack or screentemperature of Fahrenheit. In this way ings of bituminous coal; and theyare heated to a homogeneous mass is produced which conacomparatively high temperature Fahrtains the above ingredients uniformly disenheit) and are thoroughly freed from moisttributed throughout. After the mixing is 5 4 5 ure. Then the binding material is provided thoroughly efiected, the material is passed to as follows: About ninety pounds of hard coal a machine whereby it is compressed into tar pitch are heated, to which are added about small, hard blocks or cakes of about the size ten pounds of coal tar. The tar or oil proof large hen-eggs, which upon becoming cool duct is obtained in the same process of disand dry are ready for the market. v 10c 50 tillation or manufacture which produces the I have found that the mixture of the anaforesaid hard pitch. It is practically in1- thracite and bituminous coal in about the proportions named is a matter of great advantage. The particles of the anthracite coal are so hard and have faces and edges which are so smooth and sharp that it is difficult to bind them together by any of the ordinary compounds to such an extent that they will permanently maintain the forms into which they may be compressed. Especially is it true that as soon as the high heat of a fire is applied disintegration occurs, and it is impossible to get the desired coking effect; but the bituminous coal is charged with hydrocarbon elements to such an extent that as soon as heat is applied the fusion of the particles of the coal acts to assist in binding together the particles of the anthracite coal. In short, the bituminous coal may be regarded as a material intermediate between the pitch and the anthracite and adapted to assist not only in binding the particles of the fuel together but also to assist, under a high heat, in securing a coking effect.

Of course I am aware that many fuel compositions have heretofore been patented, and that it has been proposed to use in various ways the ingredients which I have above set forth; but I am familiar with all of the fuels that have been patented and also with many that it has been attempted to manufacture, and I do not believe the composition which is above described and produced in the way set forth has ever been provided for.

hat I claim is- 1. The herein described improvement in the art of manufacturing artificial fuel, the same consisting in mixing and thoroughly commingling anthracite and bituminous coal, heating the mass whereby all the moisture is expelled; then melting hard coal tar pitch and mixing with it while in a heated condition, coal tar obtained in the manufacture of pitch; then mixing and commingling the two masses while in a heated condition subjecting MAX NIRDLINGEB= Witn esses O. M. HOOPER, W. G. MARsoN. 

